


Unforeseeable Circumstances

by toffiendfee



Category: Initial D
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Cheap AU because I am a Cheap Person, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Multi, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-04
Updated: 2019-06-15
Packaged: 2020-04-07 23:39:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,798
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19095352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toffiendfee/pseuds/toffiendfee
Summary: At some point during your teen years, a mark will appear somewhere on your body. It's always a name, and it's supposed to be a guidance. It is supposed to help you find the one you are most compatible with, the one that could be your partner for life... You can choose not to pursue, but note that fate is never wrong.Even if all may seem like a giant mistake at times...





	1. Side One: The Brothers

**Author's Note:**

> I pulled this rough draft from the depth of my files and thought that I might just as well touch it up a little and finish it. It's the most cliché AU in the book, but I love it. I mean, there are reasons why soulmate AUs are so popular. This fandom deserves one, too.

The mark had appeared when he was fourteen years old: Neat script right below his right collarbone. The characters were nice to look at, but all the mark had caused was a dull sort of disappointment.

Ryosuke had thought himself to already be too old for childish idealism, but somehow there had still been excitement whenever his younger self had thought about soulmates and the mark that was bound to appear soon.

He remembered clearly the moment he was standing in front of the mirror and tracing the writing with his fingers, suddenly devoid of all excitement. What point was there? He knew what was expected of him, and a future together with the person this name belonged to wasn't according to schedule. Especially not when it was a man's name.

Maybe his brother would be luckier.

After that, he had buried all thoughts about the mark in a deep corner of his mind and pointedly tried to avoid acknowledging the words on his collarbone and thinking about what ifs whenever he looked at his reflection in the mirror after taking a shower. Over the years he had become quite good at tricking himself into believing he was uninterested.

It worked very well until he was sixteen and Keisuke got his mark (with fourteen, just like him). And when his brother’s mark was on his collarbone (just like his, but on the left side instead of right).

And when the name that stood there was the same name that was also written on _his_ skin.

Their parents' reaction didn’t even matter for a moment. The two of them had just stared at each other, mainly confused and Keisuke with barely visible jealousy and juvenile anger that Ryosuke pretended wasn't displayed on his own face as well.

Things changed after that. Their relationship had never been _completely_ harmonious in the first place, not in a household like theirs. But as brothers under the scrutiny of a strict father, they still used to stick together. After Keisuke’s mark had appeared, however, they grew further apart, divided by a silent scorn about something either of them believed they couldn’t have, although for different reasons.

By the time he was eighteen, Ryosuke had let the mark become a constant reminder of how not everything in his life was under his control. It was harder to ignore now that he had reached the age at which everyone was expected to have gotten their marks. Sometimes people asked him about it. Sometimes girls asked him, shyly, if they could see it, as if they hadn’t given up hope even though their own marks displayed a different name. He declined every inquiry politely, and most people understood that he wanted to keep it private. Many in their society thought so, after all.

Keisuke, unsurprisingly, didn’t flaunt his mark either. The time where he wasn’t at home almost began to outweigh the time that he was, and the day that he suddenly appeared at their house with his hair dyed blond and a defiant look on his face marked another changing point to Ryosuke. It hadn’t been a nice evening, and if the shouted argument had induced him to keep a closer look on his brother from now on, well, then that really didn’t come as a surprise.

Time went by fast. Before he knew it, he was studying for the university entrance exams, and Keisuke came home with bruised knuckles and on some days not at all, and Ryosuke got his acceptance letter, and if he said that during all this time he never caught himself tracing the characters on his collarbone with his fingers, softly, then he was lying to himself.

When he passed his driving test, Ryosuke got a car. And he was surprised how quickly driving began to feel natural to him. There was a special rush to it unlike anything he had felt before, and it wasn’t long until he discovered why.

Driving felt like freedom.

He suddenly understood why Keisuke did what he was doing. He had understood it before, somewhat, but the thrill of speed and the dream of glory and control all with the ever-present keen awareness of the _danger_ he was toying with produced a deep kind of understanding that an outsider’s perspective could never provide.

Leaning against his car parked at the summit of Mount Akagi, stars in the clear sky above him and the warm breeze of a summer night in his hair, Ryosuke became aware of a puzzling truth.

He would make his own pace. And looking at the street that led down the mountain, he knew exactly what pace it needed to be.

His hand moved subconsciously, and his fingers came to rest on his right collarbone.  
Just like his set future, the mark was there and couldn’t be wished away by anyone, but whether to pursue the promise behind it or not was up to him.

And by now he knew that the mark meant that not everything in his life was under his control, but neither was it under anyone else’s.

 

* * *

 

 

What everyone had always been telling him was the truth: Getting your mark _hurt_.

Some people noticed it more and some lucky ones felt it less, but Keisuke had the misfortune to experience a pain so searing that he felt tears pricking at the corners of his eyes.

Some books considered it greatly symbolic, but beyond the pain Keisuke just found it frustrating. After all he didn’t remember his brother appearing from his room with tears in his eyes after his mark had shown. He had been looking very controlled to Keisuke, but later his twelve-year-old self realised that his brother’s expression had actually been one of resignation.

Despite the mark not actually leaving any physical injuries, the flesh below his left collarbone had felt tender anyway and he remembered being scared to touch it. Deciding that he could wait a few minutes more until he checked (not because he was nervous; he just wanted to be _sure_ ), he had sunk back down on his bed from which he had leapt up upon realising what was happening.

When he finally did gather the courage to look into the mirror, he had felt terribly, terribly hollow. The tears were back and this time he didn’t have the energy to stop them from rolling down his cheeks.

He remembered that two years ago, when Ryosuke had gotten his mark and their father had merely given it a disapproving look and then lectured his oldest son about its insignificance, Keisuke had been angry on his brother’s behalf. He had only just learned that soulmarks were something coveted and beautiful, a secret to protect and a guide for your future. Just because Ryosuke was the older one, the responsible one, didn’t mean he had to give it up! But when he had tried to tell him this later when they were alone again, his brother had just shaken him off.  
He had already given it up. As expected from him.

The hollow feeling turned to rage as Keisuke stared at the characters printed on his skin, the very same characters that his brother had been given. The same name, written in the same way, so there was almost no doubt what it meant.

Keisuke was forced to _share_ again.

He usually didn’t mind sharing with Ryosuke, when it was about something to share with him and not something he had to _share.  
_Sharing could mean playing with the same toys or talking about secrets with hushed voices in the evening when they both were supposed to sleep already or fairly dividing the last manjū into two equal parts. It wasn’t something that anyone had to tell him to do. He just did it, not thinking about it too much, because it was the natural thing to do.

 _Sharing_ , however, meant that the largest part of what was _supposed_ to be for both of them went to Ryosuke. It wasn’t his fault (though Keisuke sometimes couldn’t help but think that it was) and sometimes he didn’t even seem to notice how his little brother was left with the scraps or nothing at all. But it _stung_ when their parents’ favourite, their father’s little successor, his genius big brother got things presented to him that Keisuke wanted too, so badly. However, he wasn’t Ryosuke and he had to deal with that. And for a large part of his life, he had dealt with it.

Keisuke never wanted to _share_ anything ever again. Especially not the person that was a supposedly perfect match and meant for _him_ alone. Or had everyone been lying to him? He had always held such high hopes for his soulmate as someone he didn’t have to _share_ with anyone in any way, something that was just for him for once. And although he refused to acknowledge it, some little part of him had hoped that it might be a match that his father approved of, that it might win Keisuke his favour back after Ryosuke’s mark had been such a disappointment.

So when Keisuke finally dried off his tears, successfully suppressed the urge to destroy something, stepped into the hallway and met his brother there who immediately stared at his still exposed mark and then at his face with slightly furrowed brows, well …

… in that scary moment he hated him a bit.

He used to want to meet his soulmate so badly, but now he couldn’t shake the feeling that there wouldn’t be much attention left for him considering that Ryosuke with his magnetic effect on other people was also in the game.

And so he gave up on it, just like his brother had done two years ago, and tried to find his place in other things. Things that in the end turned out to be speed and fights and everything that would give him the coveted rush of adrenaline and the admiring looks of his peers, letting him be the centre and forget about everything else for a few blissful moments until he returned home and began hating his life again.

At some point, he didn’t want to continue coming home.

But before the decision could manifest itself, Keisuke found out something very important about his brother: Apparently being addicted to adrenaline and the speed that an engine could provide you with was something that the two of them had in common, too. Just like the writing below their collarbones that had always felt like a promise neither of them would see fulfilled. And after riding down Mount Akagi at full speed Ryosuke smiled at him in a way he couldn’t remember having seen from him in years, and Keisuke realised with a start that _this_ was something his brother wanted to share _with him_.

He looked at the street in front of them, then back at Ryosuke; and for once he felt like he couldn’t say yes fast enough.

 

~~~

 

Keisuke glared at the _kid_ that supposedly had been the one to completely humiliate him a few nights ago even though it should have been impossible with _that_ car.

 _Supposedly_ and _should have been_ were the key words here. The guy looked so young, entirely too young to be such a good racer. Keisuke had just been careless. That was the only possible explanation.

(Even though he had never lost a race because of getting careless before. He had never lost a race, period. Except for any race against his brother. That was a given.)

"What's your name?", he spat out, itching to get into the car already and show this kid that what happened had been a fluke. He knew that Ryosuke was standing just a few feet away, clearly interested to see what was up with the car that had left his brother in the dust.

The guy next to the black-and-white car had the gall to look completely unimpressed.

"Fujiwara Takumi," he introduced himself, sounding like he wasn’t quite sure yet what to make of the situation, and Keisuke suddenly felt like his knees were giving out under him. At the same time, he could have sworn he heard a sharp intake of breath from where his brother stood, but it could have also very well been his own.

It made sense now. It was instinctive for both of them, this certainty that this was indeed the very Fujiwara Takumi whose name they carried around with them since they were fourteen. And the whole thing made _sense_ now, but Keisuke still managed to somehow regain the bare minimum of composure that was enough for him to answer with his own name and get into the FD even though he knew that his hands would be shaking if he didn’t grip the steering wheel and gearstick so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

 

There had been no sign of recognition from the other at the mention of his name.

 

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Keisuke had already felt like he would lose this race.


	2. Side Two: Takumi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now it's up to Takumi to make a concerning discovery.

Takumi was eighteen years old now and there still was no sign of any mark to be seen anywhere on him.

Fate seemed to take its time like it was indecisive, which just about described everything else about his life.

Takumi wasn’t bothered much by that, in fact he wasn’t even sure if he anticipated or dreaded the appearance of the mark.  
Indecisive, as always.

Itsuki fussed about the issue sometimes, but it was not like a mark showing up this late was some kind of catastrophe. It was relatively rare, but definitely not unheard of. Takumi tended to shrug the nagging questions from all different sides off and continued living his days as he always did: get up at four in the morning for the delivery, try to get as much sleep as possible before he had to get up again for his morning classes, go to his part time job at the gas station, occasionally meet with Itsuki again afterwards, go to bed early.

 

It went on like this until the evening that Iketani agreed to take them along to his racing team’s practice and Itsuki had managed to convince him to come, too. It felt like wasting time he could use very well for sleeping, and not spending it looking at guys who drove their cars up and down Mount Akina for _fun._ What fun was in that?

But he humoured them because they were his friends nonetheless and Itsuki was so excited about it that Takumi couldn’t help but get a little bit curious, too.

However, the more important thing that went down that night happened early in the morning during his daily tofu delivery. In retrospect, Takumi would say that it probably could probably be counted as a life-changing event even though back in that moment the only thing on his mind was to go back to bed as soon as possible and get some sleep. He didn’t even really pay any attention to the yellow sports car he passed with ease, only subconsciously noticing that it looked kind of familiar. But that hadn’t been important as he attempted to get home as soon as possible. He found it very puzzling how everyone was making such a fuss about it a few days later.

And maybe he was being predictable, yes, but a full tank of gas for something he had accomplished easily once before was an offer he couldn’t refuse. It would be just like one of his delivery runs.

However, standing at the mountain’s summit surrounded by a huge crowd of people that stared at him like he had just stepped out of an alien spaceship, Takumi felt out of place. He was among people who apparently took this very seriously for some reason. Especially his opponent with the eye-catching yellow car, some guy with bleached blond hair who almost _sneered_ at him and introduced himself as Takahashi Keisuke.

What was even going on with these people?

But a full tank of gas was a full tank of gas and Takumi was not willing to back out just because everyone was weirdly intense about this. And now his friends also seemed to depend on him, so that was one more reason to just get this over with.

 

And get it over with he did, but he didn’t stick around for his friends’ reactions to his victory and went straight home.

His father was still up, sitting in the living room and reading his newspaper as usual. Takumi simply dropped the car keys on the table before him and went over to the stairs. He hesitated before climbing them.

“I won. So don’t forget your promise,” he uttered, still not quite sure why his old man had made the offer in the first place. He was up to something, Takumi could sense that.

But his father only turned another page of the newspaper and made a vaguely affirmative noise as an answer, so Takumi climbed the stairs up to his room and flopped down onto his bed to sink into a dreamless sleep.

 

Unfortunately, this proved to be only the first of many times where he had to sacrifice sleep for more driving.

He had to admit that he was pretty pissed about Itsuki accepting a challenge for him. He wasn’t angry at his best friend though, he was mainly angry at the guy who came to the gas station to challenge him. That race against Takahashi Keisuke had been a one-time thing and Takumi wasn’t interested in repeating it, so how could that person think he was entitled to another one? Takumi wasn’t even interested in driving, why did nobody understand that?

But one thing led to another and suddenly he found himself facing an inexplicably furious Takahashi Keisuke who, by the looks of it, had waited for him on his delivery run just to confront him about the challenge.

Looking after the other, who closed the door of his car with an unnecessary amount of aggression after Takumi’s refusal to race and then sped away, engine howling, Takumi asked himself once again why everyone was getting so worked up about these races.

Keisuke had told him he was a racer and should stop denying it. Takumi didn’t like being told what to do. But what harm was there in trying it, especially if the opponent’s car was apparently so great that he would have a hard time winning against it?

Wanting to challenge yourself was completely normal, right?

 

Just like after his first race, Takumi dropped off the car keys in the living room and went up the stairs. He was pretty certain he didn’t imagine his father’s self-satisfied grin (half-hidden behind the newspaper,) but before he could think that thought to its end, the evening held another unpleasant surprise for him.

He was halfway up the stairs when, without warning, an intense, burning pain made him forget about all other thoughts. His back, or, more exactly, the area between his shoulder blades, was suddenly flooded with a pain so searing that he felt like he had to scream. And maybe he did scream, or his father had been alerted by the sound of him dropping to the floor and sliding back down some of the stairs because suddenly his legs couldn’t support his weight under the shock of pain. Either way, his father was quickly by his side and steadied him while trying to manoeuvre the boneless form of his son into his room. Takumi groaned as his back hit the bed and clawed at his blanket with his left hand while the pain thankfully started to subside.

His father observed him with slightly furrowed brows and they both knew what had finally happened.

“Should I leave you alone for a bit?”

Takumi considered it for a short moment and nodded. He would need some time to calm down, anyway. He had never expected it to feel that bad, honestly. He could have gotten seriously hurt had it happened in a less convenient place. Even now he was pretty sure that he had some bruises from his fall down the stairs.

Bunta left the room without further comment and closed the door behind him.

Takumi lay on his bed, taking deep breaths while the pain got less until it was barely more than a tingle.

He sat up with a sigh.

Dread and excitement were mingling to become a really unbearable cocktail, so he decided to get it over with quickly. He wasn’t sure what to expect. It might be a name he never heard before, and he would forget about it until the time came. Or it would be someone he knew. Either way, he had no idea how he would deal with the situation. Probably not like Itsuki, who had once taken the time to search through the telephone book of their area to find a matching name.

Takumi got up from his bed and walked over to the bathroom where he had a mirror to look into. He stood there for a while and stared at his reflection, still uncertain whether he really wanted to know.

Nonsense. Of course he wanted to.

He took off his shirt and had to try out a few funny contorted movements before he could get a proper look. And what he saw…

 

“You’ve _got_ to be kidding me...!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I formally apologize for this story basically being sneezed into a word document. 
> 
> I had no plan what to do with the fragments that were already written, but now I've decided to write a third chapter to give it a proper ending.


	3. The Woes of a Single Parent

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What I've dreaded has happened: I don't know how long this story is going to be anymore. Too long for something that should have been finished in two chapters... 
> 
> Some stories have a mind of their own. Since this isn't the very short project it once was anymore, I can't say when it will be finished. Maybe I'll take some time with it since it was really only supposed to be a tiny interlude before my next bigger project- 
> 
> Aaaaa :(

Bunta was sitting downstairs, pretending to be busy reading the newspaper while listening to his son moving around upstairs. After hearing Takumi leave his room and the bathroom door getting opened and closed, it was quiet in the house for a long time.

That was probably not a good sign. Bunta asked himself whether to check on his son, but quickly decided against it. He needed his privacy right now. He had to come out of the bathroom eventually, and then would be time to interrogate him.

Eventually, there was the tell-tale sound of the bathroom door opening again. Steps on the wooden floorboards that stopped for a moment when Takumi lingered at the top of the stairs, apparently hesitating. Then he turned around and Bunta heard the door of his son’s room shut with a bit more force than necessary.

Tse. Idiot.

With a sigh, Bunta folded up the newspaper and went upstairs. He knocked on Takumi’s door. “Oi. Are you still alive?”, he said as his only warning before entering without awaiting an answer.

Takumi was sitting on the edge of his mattress and refused to look at him. Now _that_ was definitely a bad sign.

“That bad?”

His son remained silent, and Bunta took a closer look at him. He was a bit pale around his nose, which could still be an aftereffect from the pain of getting his mark. Considering the way he was acting, it was likely something else.

“Who is it? A person you hate? A known criminal? A politician?”

He chuckled quietly to himself. That finally got a reaction out of Takumi. He gave him a short glare and looked away again. “None of that,” he mumbled. He forgot to add a cheeky insult though, so he was somewhere else with his thoughts.

“If it’s none of that, it can’t be that bad.”

No answer, again. Bunta sighed. Children were way too complicated sometimes. He needed some more information if he wanted to be a helpful parental unit.

“Whatever it is, it’s not the end of the world, kid. Remember that you can always decide against it.”

He knew that his son wasn’t keen on having to settle for something. It was an inherited trait; Bunta used to be like that, too. Eventually he had come to terms with how his life had ended up, but he still knew what it had been like to feel cornered by circumstances. The knowledge that a soulmark was not final, that the final decision still was his own to make, had always consoled him.

Takumi had a pained look on his face when he answered, “I… I don’t know…”

He looked a bit confused, maybe a bit scared; and he had started chewing on his bottom lip, a habit he had since his preschool days and that meant there was something he wanted to say that he was scared of saying.

Bunta suddenly had an idea what could be the cause of his son’s strange behaviour. If that was all there was to it, he might have to have a talk with him. Or maybe question his way of raising the boy.

“Takumi,” he said, frowning a bit, “I hope you know that I don’t care if it’s a man or whatever.”

Takumi finally looked at him and blinked a few times, seemingly startled. “I- uh… What? Oh… Yeah, yeah...”

So he _was_ surprised by that. Well, there they had one part of the problem. Bunta narrowed his eyes at him.

“So there’s more.”

Takumi gave him a half-glare, finally shaken out of his stupor. “Why would you think that?”

“I’ve known you for your whole life. You’re chewing your lip again. That means there’s something you’re not telling me. Parents always have their way of knowing, kid.”

Takumi immediately stopped the aforementioned action as if that did him any good now. But he knew that he had been found out, and he finally seemed to come to terms with the realisation that there was no way of getting around telling his dad what had happened.

“ _Fine_ ,” he said stubbornly. “There’s not one name, there’s _two_. Happy now?”

Well. That did give Bunta pause. Takumi was staring at him, waiting for a reaction, and he had to recollect himself for a moment.

True to himself, the first thing that came out of his mouth was an amused huff.

“Well, looks like you got quite lucky there, huh?”

“It’s not _funny_ , shitty old man!”

Ah, the cheeky insults were back. His son was cured from his mood, but he would have to pat himself on the back for that later.

“You’re making it funny with how you’re acting about it. More than one name is not very common, but it’s not like it doesn’t happen. I meant it when I said you got lucky. Stop looking at me like that.”

Takumi’s irritated expression turned back into the confused and hesitant one.

“But… I don’t know what _they_ will think about it.”

Bunta scratched his chin; the brat had a point. Two people needing to share their soulmate without prior warning… That could be a problem. Then again…

“They both wear your name somewhere, too. They’ll get used to it.”

“How encouraging,” Takumi said wryly.

“Don’t be like that. You’ll be fine. It will work out somehow… If you choose to pursue, that is. Or if one of them does.”

Takumi went silent again. There was a long pause while he mulled things over.  
The overthinking definitely came from his mother.

“I’m not sure what to do,” he finally confessed. “It’s… so new. And confusing. I didn’t think it would happen like this…”

“Hm,” Bunta made. He could understand that. He wasn’t going to pretend that he wouldn’t have been shocked and confused if two marks had appeared instead of one.

“Do you want to tell me the names?”

Takumi hesitated for a second, before mumbling something.  
“…Takahashi.”

Bunta snorted. “I alone know ten Takahashis. You’ll have to be a bit more specific.”

A slight blush had spread on Takumi’s face. “Takahashi Ryosuke and Takahashi Keisuke…”

“You know them.”

Takumi shrugged.  
“I guess. I’ve seen them.”

“Ah.”

Bunta contemplated this new fact. From the names it sounded like the two might be related, maybe brothers. In that case, 'sudden discovery that they both had the same soulmate' probably wasn’t going to be a problem.

He wondered where Takumi had seen them and learned their names. At school?  
No, probably not. Something about the way his son was acting gave Bunta the feeling that it had to be something else.

“Are they racers?”

“Yes…”

Takumi averted his eyes and pouted a little. He was still in denial about his racing talent, but it looked like fate now had a say in it, too. It couldn’t be a coincidence. It was just another thing to show that Takumi was born to be a racer.

Well, he was his son after all.

Now there was another important thing to know…

“Any good?”

Takumi hesitated before answering, “Everyone keeps saying they’re the best.”

“Heh. I’d like to see that.”

There were so many brats nowadays that thought they were god’s gift to street racing. Then again, if really everyone said it like Takumi claimed… Maybe they weren’t horrible.

“I beat one of them, though,” Takumi added, much to his father’s surprise. He almost believed to hear a bit of… pride in his words?

“Then they can’t be that good,” Bunta said with a grin that he knew would annoy his son, if only to hide his satisfaction behind it. He knew his son and his competitive streak. It looked like the first step was taken on his way to become a proper racer. Not like he hadn’t known from the beginning that it would work, but still.

Takumi glared at him again.  
“Oi. You were the one who convinced me to race him in the first place!”

“Oh?”

“The FD from a while ago. That was Takahashi Keisuke.”

Ah. Now he finally knew why the name had seemed familiar! It was the one that the Iketani kid had been babbling on about when begging him to race the guy.

There was no way any of this could be a coincidence. No, fate really had funny ways…

And if Bunta knew his son correctly (which he strongly assumed he did,) then he would end up pursuing both racing and his soulmarks. At least the first one he would, as long as Bunta had any say in it.

“Interesting,” he said out loud. Then he clapped his son on the shoulder. “It’s your choice. Remember that.”

Takumi still had a trace of uncertainty in his expression, but more important was the relief that spread across his face.

“Thank you,” he said.

 _Now_ it was time for Bunta to pat himself on the back for a job well-done.


	4. The Culmination of all Efforts

Ryosuke was more excited than Keisuke had seen him be in a long time. He could see it in that glint in his eyes, and even more in the way he immediately sat down in front of his laptop and started running simulations once they got home after the race. After seeing Fujiwara Takumi race first-hand, he was determined to find a way to beat him.

It pissed Keisuke off.

It pissed him off because not only would his brother beat Fujiwara, he would stick around afterwards and conquer him in other ways as well.

Ryosuke might have convinced himself and their parents that he had given up the thought of his soulmate, but he couldn’t fool Keisuke. This was not what giving it up looked like.

And maybe Keisuke had also been lying to himself when he thought that he was now mature enough to not feel any scorn towards his brother because of this whole thing. Sure, he was smarter now than at fourteen and he knew that cases like theirs happened, but it didn’t help to quell his anger completely. He was pissed because _he_ had technically been the one to discover Fujiwara, not his brother. But now that Ryosuke was planning to race him…

Keisuke sighed, trying not to let the jealousy get a hold of him again. He was better than this, damn it. At least he had been the one to convince Fujiwara to race, had been the one to put in the effort to stir his fire when he was still uncertain. The fact that he had raced Nakazato after all was proof enough that it had worked.

Keisuke wasn’t sure why he hadn’t used the opportunity to confront him with his soulmark as well and get a head start before his brother.

It hadn’t really felt like the right time to talk about it. He still didn’t know why Fujiwara hadn’t even flinched upon hearing their names, but he looked pretty young, after all. Maybe he didn’t even have his mark yet.

It probably all came down to him to make a move when he was ready.

Keisuke sighed again and laid his hand across his collarbone, right where the mark was.

_Fujiwara Takumi._

That guy was a damn prodigy. He knew it, Ryosuke knew it, and everyone else who had seen him race ought to have an inkling by now.

Keisuke doubted that Fujiwara knew it himself, judging by the way he was acting.

Damn. He didn’t even know what he was supposed to concentrate on anymore – the fact that had Fujiwara’s name written into his skin or the fact that he needed to make sure that the guy didn’t just go off and waste his talent. Keisuke was adamant about wanting to see him become a proper racer and beat him eventually. That was also a very important point on his to-do list.

He may not know what he was supposed to concentrate on – and he supposed that his priorities were not most other people’s priorities – but he knew what he was better at dealing with.

That’s how he would do it: Racing came first, everything else second. Soulmark or no soulmark, what he wanted his future to be like had been settled in his mind for a while now.

And if he could incorporate his soulmate into it, that would just make it all the much better.

 

* * *

 

 Fujiwara Takumi continued racing, and, more importantly, he continued to _win_.

Ryosuke was certain that he had never met anyone else like that before, someone who could race so precisely and refined and yet emerged almost out of nothing. If he didn’t wear Fujiwara’s name on his collarbone, he supposed that he wouldn’t be any less interested.

Still, that detail made it all the more clear to him – and he had never pretended to be a very humble person, after all – that Fujiwara had to be destined for greatness.

Hell, he had _seen_ it in the way Fujiwara raced, after having the pleasure of getting to experience it up close in the race against Nakazato from Myogi.

But it wasn’t enough.

He had to come closer than that, have an honest battle with Fujiwara and finally settle those feelings of unrest inside of him. He already had a faint suspicion that he wouldn’t be able to move after on, not after seeing who exactly Fujiwara Takumi _was_ …

And yet, he had no doubt in mind that he had to race him. Otherwise, he would never find closure and never even get a chance to move on because he would look back and regret his decision every step of the way. And he firmly believed that it was not good to linger in regrets about the past. Whatever decision he made in the end, it would have to be the one that could put an end to this chapter of his life once and for all.

Maybe it was time for him to step down and pursue other goals. Maybe it was Fujiwara’s role to cement this decision…

But for now, he was going to prepare himself for the challenge he would send out, and to continue watching Fujiwara’s exploits closely. It was not the time yet. He still had a way to go until he was ready for a challenge like that.

And meanwhile, Ryosuke would wait with bated breath for the right time to come.

 

* * *

 

And the time came.

 

News spread fast of how the 86 won on Usui, a course foreign to him, against a local Sil-Eighty that had been unconquered until that moment.

Keisuke didn’t know what to think. Upon hearing the news, his brother had taken one last, long look at his laptop’s screen which had displayed the layout of Akina, before snapping it shut.

"I see," he only said, and Keisuke could sense that the decisive moment was going to happen very soon. He was conflicted. He didn’t want to leave the 86 (and especially its driver) to Ryosuke, but he didn’t want his brother to lose, either…

Ryosuke walked past him, downstairs and presumably to the garage. Keisuke stood where he was for another moment, looking at the abandoned laptop on the desk.

He decided against following his brother because it didn't seem like he would want his company right now as he probably made the final preparations to the FC. As he knew him, he probably wouldn't get much sleep for the next few nights.

Keisuke doubted that he would sleep much, either.

 

~~~

 

The day of the race came far too quickly, and at the same time, not fast enough.

The whole time, Keisuke felt like he was sitting on a pile of glowing embers. Any races in between didn't do much to calm his nerves or take his thoughts off of what was going to come, and then the day finally arrived.

The atmosphere was tense between him and Ryosuke. He couldn't tell what was going on inside of him, but he doubted that it was much different from the mixture of excitement and anxiety that ran through him. Somehow, this felt like it was going to be one of the most important, defining moments of his life; and it was probably the truth.

The summer air was warm on his skin, and around them everyone else was chattering excitedly. Nothing that served to make Keisuke less nervous.

Ryosuke stood next to him, leaned against his car and staring down the pass. There was determination radiating off him, and even before he said anything, Keisuke knew that he had decided on something very important.

"Keisuke…"

"Yes?"

"I want you to know that no matter how this race will end, I will confront Fujiwara about this." He motioned to where his mark was, and Keisuke forgot to breathe for a second. He had decided after all to pursue it? Despite having suspected as much, Keisuke was still shocked to hear it so plainly from his brother. But there was more, he could feel that.

"…And?"

"If I lose, I will retire from racing."

_"What?!"_ Keisuke stared at him, wide-eyed. "But- Why would you-"

Ryosuke chuckled. "Relax. I haven't lost yet."

Keisuke, however, couldn't quite take his words to heart. If even he considered it a real possibility that he might lose, then what could that mean for this race…?

 

* * *

 

The race was over.

Takumi wiped the sweat off his forehead and got out of his car, noticing that his legs were trembling a bit. That had been the most terrifying – exhilarating – _amazing_ experience in his entire life, probably. No wonder he was shaking.

"Fujiwara."

Takumi couldn't help but flinch a bit when he heard his name being called. He didn't know what was going to come next – was Takahashi Ryosuke angry at him? Would he try to argue about the result of this race?

Well, he didn't have to argue about that.

"I don't think I've won," Takumi quickly said before the other could get another word in. He was too nervous to meet his eyes, so he ended up staring at his shoes instead.

"No. You won fair and square, there's no need debating that. I made a mistake, and you passed me. You won, and I admire that you were able to do that."

Takumi looked up and blinked once, twice. "I-"

Ryosuke raised a hand to stop him. "Please. Nothing you can say right now could persuade me to take back what I said. For what you're doing, and for what you already accomplished, you deserve my respect. But that is not all I wanted to say to you."

The elder Takahashi brother was not an easy person to read, especially not to Takumi who was still trying to grasp _why_ he had said all of those things to him, but there was something in his expression in that moment that gave Takumi a feeling that he knew what the other was about to say next.

Ryosuke seemed to search his face for a reaction. "It isn't easy for me to talk about this, but I get the feeling that we are on the same page." He took a deep breath. "Fujiwara Takumi-"

He made a small pause before saying Takumi's given name, and the way he said it made its owner's breath hitch.

"-I've known your name since I was fourteen. I spent a long time considering the fact that I might never meet you. That I've gotten to know you, under circumstances like this-"

Takumi felt the heat rise to his face. Until a few weeks ago, he had no way of knowing that a situation like this would come, and he was not prepared, as much as he would have liked to say otherwise.

"Ryosuke-san?"

The addressed took a few moments to gather his breath. "I apologise," he said. "I assume you know as well that there is another factor that neither of us should forget about."

"Yes," Takumi answered quietly, remembering the second name on his back.

"Then let us wait for him. I assume he will arrive shortly."

Both of them went quiet after that, mulling over their thoughts while looking the way they had come and waiting for headlights to appear.

Just like Ryosuke had predicted, they didn't have to wait long.

Keisuke Takahashi's yellow FD appeared behind the corner, moments later stopping a few meters away from them with screeching tires. Keisuke didn't lose any time in getting out of his car.

"Aniki!", he called out, but apparently didn't know what to say after that, because he only kept silently alternating between looking at both of their faces as he walked over to them.

Takumi didn't know any more than him what to say, which only left Ryosuke.

"Keisuke," he said in return, a smile curling around his lips. "I lost." He sounded almost amused.

"I heard already- Are you two…?" He trailed off, looking both helpless and confused for some reason.

"We were waiting for you," his brother stated. Then he looked at Takumi. "Say, how long have you known that we are your soulmates?"

Keisuke spluttered at how blunt he was being, and Takumi could only blush furiously again.

"I- It only happened a few months ago… After the race with Nakazato…"

Ryosuke regarded him thoughtfully. "I see. Then that's why you didn't show any reaction before that. I had been wondering…"

Keisuke made a step forward and raised his hand as if wanting to touch Takumi, before hesitating and lowering it again.

"Is it really true?", he asked. "Do you have both of our names?"

Takumi nodded. "Both," he said. "It was quite a shock," he added, quietly enough that neither of the brothers could hear him. He could imagine, though, that it must have been the same for them. In the past months he had done some research and found out that it was rare enough to often cause problems when it occurred because no one knew what to do with it. He was thankful that his dad had taken in the news so calmly, otherwise he might have freaked out, too.

"What are your plans?", Ryosuke suddenly asked, looking at him seriously. "You must have given this some thought already. What are you planning to do now?"

Takumi hesitated. This was the question he had dreaded.

"I don't know," he answered. "I'm not sure… I don't even know what you think about it."

"As for me, I would like to get to know you better," Ryosuke stated with absolutely no hesitation and looked over at his brother, who paused before nodding.

"So do I," Keisuke said. "I mean, it's damn confusing alright, and I have no idea where this could be going, but I want to try."

Takumi kept silent for a few seconds while both brothers stared at him expectantly.

"I'm still not sure," he finally said, looking past both of them into the dark sky. "I don't know where I want to go. I have no idea where this is going to lead. I'm sorry- it's just, I'm confused-"

"Fujiwara-", Keisuke began, but his brother held him back with a raised hand.

"I understand your sentiment," he said, looking serious again. "But allow me to give you a piece of advice. It has nothing to do with these marks or anything they imply."

Takumi nodded, listening intently.

"Don't limit yourself to Akina. There's a large world out there, and you have what it takes to conquer it. I could see in our race that you are not doing this out of obligation anymore. You have the talent and you have the passion. Hold onto it and don't let anything hold you back. I'm not going to let you promise me that because it's your choice to make; but know that we will both be waiting."

Takumi swallowed. "Okay," he said, trying to make his voice sound normal. It seemed almost like the path life wanted him to take was laid out in front of him now. He couldn't lie: Ryosuke's words had made him curious about the possibilities that were.

"Aniki, what about-?", Keisuke attempted to ask, but was shushed again.

"We will talk about that later," he stated, then added, "It all depends on what you will do, Fujiwara."

It sounded like there was something else behind his words that only he and Keisuke knew about, but Takumi nodded. "I will think about it."

Ryosuke smiled. "Thank you. I'm already anxious to hear what you will do next."

He turned towards his car and opened the door, calling towards Keisuke, "We're leaving."

Keisuke looked like he wanted to protest for a moment, eyes still lingering on Takumi with breath-taking intensity. Then he exhaled deeply and turned around as well, but not before telling Takumi "We'll be waiting. After all, it will still be one of us who eventually beats you." He gave Takumi a cocky grin, and the latter nodded sagely.

Takumi watched as the brothers got into their cars and watched as they drove away, one half of him suddenly wanting to follow them.

He sat in the 86's driver seat either way and thought about what had been said to him while fastening his seatbelt. The world seemed full of possibilities, and the marks between his shoulder blades felt like they were burning. Takumi shifted in the seat and thought _'maybe.'_

 

Then, correcting himself in his head, _'soon.'_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sigh... 
> 
> So, to be honest, I feel the need to apologize about this one. This story does not have a great conclusion, although it probably deserved a better one. The truth is that I more or less hit a wall while writing, and this story wasn't fun for me to work on anymore. At all. I approached it with a wrong mindset and any plans I might have had for it were complete mumbo-jumbo and honestly, it was all just a mess.  
> Having to write this story felt like a burden, and that's not what it's supposed to feel like. Hence, I've decided to give it one last chapter and some sort of conclusion that wraps it off, rather than just letting it sit there unfinished for forever because I can't realize my grand plans for it. 
> 
> Sorry to everyone who enjoyed this story and was hoping for more than this. I hope you understand my decision. Who knows, maybe I'll end up giving this AU another shot one day...
> 
> Until then, I will focus on the projects that I'm actually excited about, and not force myself to write something that I will never be satisfied with.

**Author's Note:**

> If you have the time, please consider telling me what you think about this!


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